Mali's ex-junta chief Sanogo detained

Malian security forces have detained General Amadou Sanogo, the leader of the coup that plunged the country into chaos last year, the defence ministry said on Wednesday.

Sanogo has this month repeatedly ignored summons by the justice ministry to attend questioning over six deaths during an army protest in September.

Mali's newly-elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita is under pressure to restore the state's authority over both the army, which carried out the March 2012 coup, and the north, which was occupied by a mix of separatist and rebels.

The defence ministry did not give any further details on Sanogo's detention, saying only that he had been taken into custody by soldiers.

A Bamako-based diplomat said that Sanogo was also wanted for questioning over the deaths and disappearances of soldiers who tried to resist his coup last year.

Boubacar Diallo, a witness outside the Djicoroni military base in Bamako where Sanogo is believed to have been, said he saw heavily armed troops arrive on the scene on Wednesday morning.